FC Halifax Town boss Billy Heath has stated that his side did not show a lack of effort as the Shaymen played out a 1-1 draw with AFC Telford United at the MBi Shay Stadium.
In a game that displayed a lack of any real chances, it was deep into the second half when the scoring was opened through Joe Fitzpatrick. However, with five minutes added on at the end, Josh Wilde popped up in the box to level for Town as the whistle was blown.
After the game, Heath recognised that Telford got the result they came for and believes a lack of quality allowed them to leave with the point.
“It was a game that was devoid of a lot of quality really. It looked as if nobody was going to score but, obviously, they opened with an absolute cracker from 30 yards”.
“The main thing is we pushed and we kept going then Josh Wilde has put in a nice finish but, overall, it was a game with a lack of quality. Telford came and set up for a point, they got what they came for”.
“We did not have the quality today to create enough chances, we certainly did not have the quality to break them down because they were very reserved. They sat in a lot during the second half, it was settled and everything was slowed down but they need all the points they can get, like we do”.
The visitors’ goal came somewhat out of nowhere as Fitzpatrick picked the ball up after Town had dealt with a corner. The Telford man then unleashed a fantastic shot from 30 yards and Heath believes the resulting goal was well deserved for resilient away aside.
“It was absolutely fantastic. It came out and you think ‘we have defended the set piece’ but the lad must have been 30 yards out, you saw how good the strike was ‘Drenchy’ never even moved his feet”.
“Sometimes people hit them but on the flipside of it the players can throw the white flag in and not push on. Fair play to Telford, they have got themselves into the game and earned a point”.
Overall though, it was a disappointing performance from Town as the Shaymen struggled to dictate the play. For Heath, his side were missing Jordan Sinnott as the midfielder begins a period on the side lines through injury, and this showed on the pitch.
“I just think that today the full team were not great with their football. Obviously, you will always miss Jordan because everybody knows he is fantastic on the football and he does give you that quality. There was not a lack of effort or desire, it did not help that it did not work for ‘Dents’”.
“He was off the mark but we cannot rely on the big man every game and I thought one or two were not great on the football. I cannot fault the effort but, like I say, it was a devoid of quality”.
The home crowd were quick to voice their frustration as many felt that their side should be easily seeing off a side lower in the league table. Despite this, Heath believes that this is not the case as his side showed resilience to come away with the point.
“When we are at home to Telford people will automatically think, we can win but this league does not work that way. Every game is difficult, it will always be a tight affair if you do not have that quality. The main thing is we kept going, a lot of other teams would have thrown the towel in”.
You can now watch the full interview with Heath along with post-match reaction from Danny Clarke and Steven Drench on Shaymen Player HD.
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